1 EAGLETON NOTES: Simplicity

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Thursday 15 September 2022

Simplicity

Why is nothing ever simple? I’m tempted to say that there was a time in all our lives when things were simple relative to today and, in a way, it’s true but in many other ways that seeming simplicity wasn't as simple as we sometimes make out.

For example if your bus was cancelled or any transportation was disrupted you had no way of letting the hospital know you’d be late for your appointment or any of the similar things which were daily occurrences. Indeed I would say that communication is a huge way in which life has become simpler and yet more complex.

Another example is meeting people when you went into town. You had to make prior arrangements and if anything went awry then I, for one, can recall aborted meetings which caused considerable worry and angst at the time. Now if I go into town with someone we do our separate shopping and then say “Phone me when you’re almost done and we’ll decide the best place and time to meet.” Or if I'm meeting at a particular time a call or text message lets each other know what's happening if something goes awry.

We used to book phone calls at Christmas with our relatives in Australia and Canada. They were expensive and short. Telegrams and their international equivalent could be used in extremis but it could still be ages before you knew a relative had died. Now we can chat every day to friends and family anywhere in the world if we want using a myriad of audio visual or 'written' messenger applications.

Ordinary written conversations with relatives and friends abroad took up to 5 weeks between each letter being written and received: sometimes more. A friend at Prep School had a father at sea (he was a Chief Engineer like my son) and he often arrived home 9 months after he’d gone away and, on one occasion, arrived home before the telegram about his impending arrival. I recall that because my friend’s Mother was cross to say the least.

I mentioned at a gathering recently that I write or send at least a dozen snail mail cards and letters a week. Most of the others present neither receive not write missives sent by snail mail at all. Christmas cards on a reduced level seem to be an exception.

Obviously a book could be written on this subject and many probably have been.

Thinking about it it seems to me that the number of things where simplicity in life these days compared with my youth is absolutely colossal. 

What I can't decide is what is good and what is bad and how many things in our general life are so vastly different now.

38 comments:

  1. I'm first again. Promise I'm not a stalker.
    My life has always been easy, I expected and expect it to be so. I like all this new fangled stuff and instant communication but it worries me not a jot when it doesn't work. I simply borrow a phone from somebody. All somebodies' have phones these days. It has become a tad confusing lately as the last phone I borrowed turned everything sideways halfway through what I was texting. Apparently they all do that if you don't stay still. My haircutter is a star bar when dealing with old men and working phones. She's rubbish at bike engines so horses for courses I guess.
    Good to see a post.

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    1. Adrian, you're a far more diligent follower of your Blogland friends and I'm always delighted (and occasionally terrified) by your comments. I've had my New Zealand family staying so Blogland has taken a back burner for a few weeks I'm sad to say.

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  2. Interesting post. Lots to think about. Changes in technology are surreal. In it all though, gossips on the ground have not changed. They still spread stories the old fsshion way. There are some, though, that use the Internet to spread their gossip. The judgemental type wearing sheep's clothing are the worse.
    On the Good side, being easily in touch with love ones is tremendously Helpful.

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    1. Maywyn, the use of social media occasionally scares me with its rawness but occasionally. good comes out of it too.

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  3. This topic is fascinating, changes both good and bad are happening at every moment. How wonderful you write so many letters and cards each week, I write quite a few too, to regular pen pals round the world and locally notes of encouragement. I love to give and receive paper cards in the mail which is sad to say not much done any more.

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    1. Terra, it's good to know someone else who writes letters. There are relatively few of us left it would seem. I make a lot of photo cards using my own photos particularly for friends who do not have computers or any electronic communication devices.

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    2. I do tons of snail mail…email..text…FaceTime…no social media sites…

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  4. When I do genealogy, I am always struck with how long folk had to wait to hear news from "home" - and here we are, able to not only write instantaneous messages but even see each other in real time on the screen. I am greatly appreciative of the communications technology we have today.

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    1. Margaret, I agree with you absolutely. I love that I can speak to friends anywhere in the world face to face.

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  5. I remember how astonishing I thought it when I first sent an email to the USA and received a reply within a few minutes (this was when I worked in a university in the mid-1980s before most people hadn't even heard of email). However, we do still like to send snail-mail thank you letters for Christmas and birthday presents.

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    1. Tasker, I agree particularly about snail-mail thank you letters and birthday cards.

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  6. My sister and I were just talking the other day about how our grandparents would be shocked to see the changes that have taken place - pumping our own gas, people exercising and jogging for fun, phones in our pockets so we can be reached 24/7, giant TVs in our homes, the list is endless...

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    1. Apologies, Ellen. Your comment went to spam (post to follow later on the problem). You are absolutely right though, the list is endless.

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  7. I sit down most Sunday mornings and write a letter to my daughter and post it out Monday morning. I love the simplicity of it, a quiet house and a hot cup close by as I type and reponder the week that was.

    Today, I baked bread. I have a perfectly good bread maker, but there was something very satisfying about kneading the dough on the table, sprinkling a bit more flour and kneading some more. The house was quiet, and the rhythm comforting.

    I am grateful for the technology that allows me to stay in daily contact with those far away. You included!

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    1. Thank you Debby. I have made bread for years but am ashamed to say that I have always left the kneading etc to the breadmaker. The only problem I have with handwritten letters is remembering what I told people. Your method of writing more regularly gets over that.

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    2. 😬not handwritten. I type them on a computer, print it out, and then save the letter until the next Sunday. That way I know where to pick up.

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    3. Apologies for late response Debby. (Post on the problem to follow). Your idea is brilliant. I Could, or course scan my handwritten letters which would give me the information too. Thank you!

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  8. It's the technology revolution. Similar problems and woes occurred during the industrial revolution. I still prefer to live in our times where we have washing machines, dryers, electric ovens, air conditioning and oh yes computers and mobile phones.

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    1. Diane, so do I. I'll put up with the other issues they cause.

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  9. What amazes me is how people were able to communicate and meet at a certain time. I would write my Dad and tell him where to pick mw up when I was coming home for the weekend. It always worked.

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    1. My parents always had a telephone from before I was born so communicating with them at home was never a problem so long as I could find a phone where I was.

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  10. A very good friend of mine died recently and I was able to follow her treatment, and eventually her passing, on an hour to hour basis on WhatsApp. This may sound gruesome, but I was desperate for good news. Unfortunately, it never came.

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    1. Cro, I have for many years been haunted by the circumstances of my Uncle'd death who was in the local hospital here in Stornoway when he was dying. I was away one afternoon knowing that I would be phoned if he deteriorated but it was just before signals were as reliable as they are now and I didn't get the phone calls. Fortunately he hung on until I arrived but I missed precious time with him at the end.

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  11. Like most of us here, I appreciate the possibilities of modern technology, not only in communication but in many other aspects, too. I like taking photos during walks and relive good times later on by blogging about them, such as my Yorkshire holidays. I am also glad that between my Mum, my sister and I we can keep in touch and know how my Dad is without delay, and give our parents support when and as it is needed. My clients can contact me quickly if any data protection/privacy issue arises, and I can help them with advice and suggestions for solutions. When my train connection fails, I can work out my next step and let O.K. know about it so that he does not have to wait for me at the station longer than necessary.
    I love having a washing machine and a fridge, central heating and electric light, too!

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    1. Meike, you have such an optimistic and positive outlook on life. It always cheers me up.

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  12. In the early days of Facebook and social media I found it a godsend for keeping in touch with my family after moving away.
    We still communicate via Facebook and WhatsApp as my sister and I are too deaf to speak on the 'phone.
    Unfortunately, Facebook seems to have turned into an ugly place these days, full of aggressive, cruel people shouting at each other. My profile is private but I can still see what pops up relentlessly on my home page.

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    1. JayCee, I was talking to a friend over coffee this morning and we were making the exact some point about Facebook. My view is quite simply "If you don't have something constructive or positive to say, then don't say anything at all."

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  13. Growing up in UK and Germany in the 1950s/60s, I remember almost the only means of contact with family/friends in the US was writing letters--took weeks for them to arrive and more weeks to get a response. Telephone calls from overseas were very rare--only for extreme emergencies. Trying to buy anything from the US (usually via the Sears catalog) took ages. Wasn't hard to buy clothing/shoes in UK, but wasn't quite so simple in Germany. We did have military TV station in Germany, but all US TV programs (black and white TV only) were about six+ months out of date. US Christmas programs were always viewed in June/July.
    Compared to now, I think about 9/11--I was in my office in Washington, DC when the planes crashed into the Towers and the Pentagon (just a couple of miles from my office). Only the day before, I had been working in NYC and had flown home late that night. Most of my family, several living in different parts of the nation, were able to reach me and reassure themselves about my safety. However, one son, who was on incommunicado military duty, was not told about the attacks until 5 pm that day. He thought I was still in NYC and was frantic about me so was given special permission to call. When I picked up my home phone, he broke down in sobs as he heard my voice--so relieved I was safe. Unsurprisingly, our mobiles didn't work that day as circuits quickly became overloaded as events developed. Still a regular occurrence around the US during significant events such as large-scale damaging storms--hurricanes or earthquakes.

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    1. Mary, your story about 9/11 made me realise just how fragile our communication ability can be for many reasons. I have this tendency to believe that communications are a virtually foolproof so when they prove not to be I get even more upset.

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  14. I think most of it in your post was a bit before my time, I wasn't born until 1971 but I do remember having a black and white tv - we didn't get a colour one until the late 1970s, having one phone in the house. Sometimes i think today's technology is replacing the good free things we use to have, now people are tied to their phones.

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    1. Amy, your last sentence is certainly true for many people - me included. If I put my phone down or go out without it, I have difficulty coping until we are re-united. I use my phone for virtually everything for most of the day from looking up recipes to, naming plants and communicating.

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  15. Life as we knew it...the world as we knew it...are both changing rapidly....and not, in every way, for the better. Just my opinion...but there it is. :)

    Take good care, Graham.

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    1. I, Lee, have no idea why my above comment is shown as "Anonymous"....I'm not afraid to give my name...I wish blogger wouldn't keep altering things!!!! :)

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    2. Lee, the "Take good care, Graham" gave me a big clue as to your identity but yes, I wish that Blogger/Google would stop messing things about.

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  16. "Once upon a time" I bookmarked your blog. Today I visited again; and again enjoyed what I read. Thank you.
    Not to repeat what has already been written:
    I still have my old typewriter, plus six brand new ribbons - just in case.
    Oh yes, and stationery; and pencils.
    After all, how wonderful [it was] to send a letter into the wide world and then wait for the answer ... until - hurrah! - it eventually came.
    Of course, I wouldn't be sad if I didn't have to use them any more.
    Having moved into my last dwelling six feet under, I would like to be a fly on the wall, though, when the descendants inspect their inheritance ...

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    1. Thank you for your kind comment, Sean.

      I don't have a typewriter but I use pencils (usually Double B) all the time (to the extent that an electric pencil sharpener lives at my side).

      Hopefully when I cease to exist my friends and relatives will get a handwritten missive.

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    2. Graham, just noticed that I am a bit late for "The Clock"-party. Still could not resist to leave a few lines. The peace of the night.

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  17. Last night I was running late to dinner and at just two minutes past the agreed time, my friend phoned to find out where I was. This is when I wish for simpler times!
    Mobile phones and the internet have really made life a lot easier though. I especially love internet shopping because I don't have to be on my feet in a shopping centre

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